Meet Mrs Anne Sutherland

Radford's Food Technology and Textiles Assistant, Mrs Anne Sutherland, wears many hats. In addition to her cooking career, she is a passionate cricket coach and scorer. Mrs Sutherland has scored for prestigious events, such as the Big Bash Leagues and T20 World Cup in Canberra in 2020. She also dedicated 25 years to coaching and umpiring hockey before retiring in 2022. Mrs Sutherland's willingness to lend a hand led her to scoring cricket many years ago and teaching more recently, after a successful career as a chef for more than 20 years.

You've been a food tech assistant since 2004, starting at Daramalan College and joining Radford College in March 2022. You were a chef prior to that. Can you tell us about your cheffing experience?

I became a chef in an era (early 80s) when women were being encouraged to join non-traditional roles. At the time, I was working as a kitchen hand after returning from a gap year as a jillaroo and governess on a property in the far west of NSW. The government was offering incentives, and I was offered an apprenticeship from my boss, which I took up. After finishing my apprenticeship, I fell into a role as a breakfast chef at a resort in Port Macquarie and spent the next 15 years cooking breakfast and lunch.

Cricket is your summer passion, and you've received honours from Cricket ACT for your work in junior cricket and scoring. How did you get into cricket scoring?

I started scoring cricket when my nephew and son were playing as they needed someone to score the games. I have always enjoyed cricket and would say that it is one of my favourite sports. When I was at school, cricket was never offered to girls, so I played vigoro, which is like cricket, and I used to score for my team. I then went onto score for my previous school for 17 seasons and have been scoring cricket for ANU's first grade for the past six years. I have scored at a representative level for over ten years, including international women's games, Women's Big Bash League (WBBL), a BBL pre-season game and junior representative games. The highlight was being selected as a scorer for the Women’s T20 World Cup in 2020, where I was also awarded a replica world cup trophy (hand blown by the Glass House) for my contribution to women’s cricket in the ACT.

What inspired you to move into the classroom with cooking?

When my children started school, I wanted to work school hours to be at home with them more. Working early mornings and nights as a chef is not very family-friendly. I applied for a job as a food tech assistant in 2004 and loved being able to help students learn skills and develop a love for cooking.

What brought you to Radford?

After working at my previous school for 17-and-a-half years, I felt I needed a change, and Radford was my preferred choice given the great design technology team and that I have scored for many past Radford teams. I also knew Radford had a great cricket program!

What are you enjoying most about Radford?

Radford has given me a better work-life balance, and I enjoy more time with my children and grandchildren. The school has made me feel part of the community, and I love working here. The design technology team is creative, passionate and great to work with.